Choose your color scheme

Monday

Aug 26, 2013 at 12:01 AMAug 26, 2013 at 6:00 AM

When designing the inside of your home, selecting a color scheme is one of the most important decisions you’ll make.

Tip of the Week

When designing the inside of your home, selecting a color scheme is one of the most important decisions you’ll make. Associated with emotions, colors reflect you and how you want that space to feel, says Rona J. Spiegel, president of Lifestyle Interior Designs Ltd. in New Jersey.

“For example, colors in the blue family tend to give a peaceful feeling when they are on the warm side, but if you were to pick cooler blues, you could get a colder and more depressing space,” Spiegel says. “When working with clients to select what works best for them, I sometimes work backwards. By eliminating the colors we don’t like, we get to the ones we do.”

Tips from Spiegel to get started:

1. Color is influenced by light. Which way does your room face? What kind of artificial lighting do you have, and how does the color you like look at night? Take your answers into consideration before choosing.

2. Check your closet. Here is where you’ll find colors you like to surround yourself in. What you like to wear also may be perfect for paint on a wall or accents in your home.

3. Choose dominant first. This color should occupy 60 percent of the room, including the walls. Try a sample before you paint the whole room to make sure it's something you can live with.

4. Make a list. Jot down words that describe how the room should feel (calm, inviting, vibrant) and match each word to a color that evokes that feeling.

5. Work on secondary. This color in the scheme may be a lighter or darker version of the dominant color. Keep lighter colors closer to the ceiling, and about 30 percent of the overall space.

6. Finish with a third. Selecting your accent color should be 10 percent of the total space. Feel free to go a little wild and have fun.

For more ideas, visit Spiegel’s website at www.lifestyleinteriordesigns.com.